Grahame-Smith is producing this two-film adaptation of King’s epic 1986 novel about a shapeshifting evil that feeds off the fear of children—most often in the form of a bloodthirsty clown known as Pennywise. Cary Fukunaga (True Detective) is directing and co-writing the first installment, which will focus solely on a group of kids who join forces to fight back against the malevolent force. A second film would pick up with the same characters as adults, returning home to discover It has resurrected.

The novel was previously adapted into an ABC miniseries in 1990, starring Tim Curry as the deranged, sharp-fanged clown.

“I think that if anything, [the new film] will bring back some of the viciousness of the book that they couldn’t do with the miniseries because it was for broadcast,” Grahame-Smith says. “I think it’s going to be very scary, but I also feel like you’ve got Cary who is going to direct these kids—and he’s incredible at casting, incredible at shooting. He’s incredible with tone and atmosphere. One of the things I wanted to do is be a part of one of the really good King adaptations. As we know, there is an echelon of King adaptations that are classics. There are some that are okay. There are some that we’d rather forget.”

Status: “We’re going to get a draft, what is supposed to be the shooting [script], any day now from Cary and his writing partner,” Grahame-Smith says. “We’re doing a deal for them to write the second movie. Our hope is to prep sometime in the next few months and shoot in the summer. That one is as much on the runway as we can possibly be. I know New Line is ready to go.”

Last edited by WyldeMan on 11/5/2017, 7:45 am; edited 12 times in total

After blowing our collective minds with the first season of “True Detective”, Cary Fukunaga is still developing a modern day take on Stephen King’s It.What we didn’t know is that he’s been working on it for several years – and that he eventually had to start from scratch.

Bloody Disgusting reader Lucca Cantisano shared pages from Brazilian newspaper O Globo in which Fukunaga talks about the lengthy development process, their hunt for Pennywise, and getting Stephen King’s blessing.

“I’ve been in this project for about five years,” says Fukunaga in a translation by Lucca. “I had already read versions of the script but nothing felt right. Everybody tried to put too much into it, telling it from the perspective of the adult and the child in a two hour movie. It didn’t fit. So I decided to throw it all away and start from scratch.

“This will be my first movie in the US and I’m still trying to find the perfect guy to play Pennywise,” he added. “It’s really good to know Stephen [King] likes what we did. We (Fukunaga and writers David Kajganich and Chase Palmer) changed names, dates (the story is originally set in the 60′s) dynamics, but the spirit is similar to what he’d like to see in cinemas, I think.”

Based on the novel by Stephen King, the 1990 horror miniseries “It” originally starred Tim Curry as the hellish Pennywise. It took place in 1960 where seven outcast kids known as “The Loser Club” fight an evil demon who poses as a child-killing clown. 30 years later, they are called back to fight the same clown again…

New Line and “True Detective” director Cary Fukunaga have found their “It.”

Sources tell Variety that Will Poulter (“We’re the Millers”) is in negotiations to play Pennywise, the evil monster who lured in children disguised as a clown, in the upcoming remake of Stephen King’s horror classic.

Fukunaga will direct “It,” which will be split into two feature films.

The original story followed a group of outcast kids who come together over summer break to take on the monster that’s haunting their town, battling their own personal monsters in the process.

King’s popular book was made into a TV miniseries in 1991 starring John Ritter and Tim Curry, who played the clown in terrifying fashion. A film adaptation was never undertaken given the size of the King novel, but Fukunaga has been very vocal recently that the latest script will stay true to the King story while also giving the film a new look.

Fukunaga penned the screenplay along with Chase Palmer. Seth Grahame-Smith and David Katzenberg are also producing through their KatzSmith banner while Dan Lin and Roy Lee are also producing.

Niija Kuykendall, Dave Neustadter and Walter Hamada are overseeing for Warner Bros. and New Line. Production will begin this summer.

After considering older actors like Mark Rylance and Ben Mendelsohn for the Pennywise role, New Line wanted to take a different route and go younger. New Line also distributed Poulter’s “We’re the Millers,” which co-starred Jennifer Aniston and Jason Sudeikis.

Sources say in the end, Fukunaga could not say no after being blown away by Poulter’s audition for the part and felt he was the right choice for the role.

While the role is dark and evil, sources say Poulter is more than capable of taking on the character especially after his work on New Regency’s “The Revenant,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio. In the Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu film, he plays one of the robbers who leaves DiCaprio for dead after he is mauled in the wilderness by a bear. Insiders who have seen early footage feel that Poulter, 22, is more than ready for a villainous lead.

Since the original novel ran at about 900 pages and spanned several decades, the plan is for New Line to shoot one movie focusing on the protagonists as kids and another focusing on them as adults. Fukunaga has scripts for both ready, with Poulter appearing in both films, making him the star of the project.

He can be seen next in “The Revenant,” which opens on Christmas Day, and is attached to “Yellowbirds” opposite Tye Sheridan.

He is repped by WME, Hamilton Hodell and Pippa Beng and Donna Mills in the U.K.

That kid has grown up FAST! He was just in that shitty We're the Millers movie and looked like he had just started puberty but apparently sending him into the wilderness with DiCaprio and Hardy for a few months made a man outta him. Though truthfully he showed some dark tendencies already in The Maze Runner. Besides everybody looks horrifying in clown makeup, without it Tim Curry just looks like he might try and give you a makeover.

Yeah he's 22 years old (this past January) and is from the UK. The piece I posted said they initially looked at some older actors but then decided to go younger.

And then this:

Sources say in the end, Fukunaga could not say no after being blown away by Poulter’s audition for the part and felt he was the right choice for the role.

While the role is dark and evil, sources say Poulter is more than capable of taking on the character especially after his work on New Regency’s “The Revenant,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio. In the Alejandro Gonzalez Innaritu film, he plays one of the robbers who leaves DiCaprio for dead after he is mauled in the wilderness by a bear. Insiders who have seen early footage feel that Poulter, 22, is more than ready for a villainous lead.

Cary Fukunaga out as director of the big adaptation of Stephen King's IT?!?

Ahoy, squirts! Quint here with some bad Memorial Day news. If The Wrap's sources are correct, it looks like not only is True Detective's Cary Fukunaga out of the big movie adaptation of Stephen King's IT, but it's likely the movie is on hold permanently. At least his ambitious version of the story, which would have had two films, one telling the story of the main characters as kids and the second focusing on them as adults.

That's very much how the book is structured and it would have een really interesting to have seen that done on a cinematic scale. I mean, I love me some Tim Curry as Pennywise, but there's a whole lot of that book that either didn't make it into the miniseries or was done poorly.

The rumor is that Fukunaga is out after fighting with the studio about the budget and filming location. He wanted to film in the very expensive New York State, for instance.

The thing that blows my mind is the article also cites cold feet from the studio after the poor box office performance of Poltergeist because the marketing of Poltergeist centered around a scary clown and that didn't work. Um... If that's true, then there are some real big dumbasses at work at Warner Bros/New Line. By that rationale all they have to do is cast an Avenger as one of the adults, slap their face on the poster and they'll make a billion dollars.This is a real bummer because I have a feeling Fukunaga was a real inspired creative force behind this project. The last thing we need is another mediocre IT adaptation. Seriously, if you haven't read the book, don't be intimidated by the page count. It's one of King's richest, most superb works as a storyteller.

I'd kill to read Fukunaga's scripts for the two-parter, but I'd much rather see his movies. Casting Will Poulter as Pennywise was either going to be the most brilliant casting decision of the decade or result in a massive trainwreck. No room for much middle ground there... Maybe WB will realize they fucked up, but I wouldn't hold my breath...

@GrooThePerverted wrote:The rumor is that Fukunaga is out after fighting with the studio about the budget and filming location. He wanted to film in the very expensive New York State, for instance.

A little more on that.

Cary Fukunaga has left his gig directing New Line’s upcoming adaptation of Stephen King’s It. New Line and the True Detective director are going their separate ways owing to conflicts over budget, derived at least in part from creative differences, sources say.This puts the production in an awkward place; shooting was scheduled to start in mid-June. To keep on track, the studio is going to have to find a new helmer soon. However, reports have it that the studio is holding firm on a $30 million budget, but submitted script drafts would have required much more finding and that even at this late date, a final draft has not been approved. There has been no word from New Line on either Fukunaga’s replacement, or how this shake-up might affect the production.

They were getting two films for $30 million from an award winning writer/director and they couldn't go any higher, that's just a damn shame. Who knows what Carey could have given them, he wasted as much time on this as GDT did on At the Mountains.

But the project is a priority for New Line and producers Dan Lin, Roy Lee, Seth Grahame-Smith and David Katzenberg, who hit the trail for a filmmaker without missing a beat.

It was to have started shooting in late June and a new start date remains unclear. Upon closing of Muschietti’s deal, New Line will begin a search for a new writer to tailor a script to Muschietti’s vision. The plan is for the adaptation to still take place over two parts.

Also unclear at this stage is the involvement of Will Poulter, the actor who was to play an evil entity who commonly takes the form of a clown named Pennywise and torments children in a small Maine town. The actor is no longer officially attached but could possibly return depending on scheduling and other factors.

Muschietti's sister and writing partner Barbara Muschietti likely will come aboard the project as a producer.

Muschietti made his feature directorial debut with Mama, the 2013 horror movie that he also co-wrote and that starred Jessica Chastain and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau. The picture scared up $71 million domestically on a budget of only $15 million.

The filmmaker, who is repped by WME, has several projects in development and was at one point attached to direct Universal’s remake of The Mummy.

Jon Silk is executive producing It. Richard Brener, Walter Hamada and Dave Neustadter are overseeing the project for New Line while Niija Kuykendall is shepherding for Warner Bros.

For a cover story this week on “Beasts of No Nation,” Cary Fukunaga explained to Variety why he bailed this summer on New Line’s horror movie remake of Stephen King’s “It.” Fukunaga had already written a script with Chase Palmer on the project, which he first boarded in 2012 (it started at Warner Bros. before it was moved to New Line). The studio is now looking to hire a new director with a fresh script.

Fukunaga had planned on making “It” into two films. Although early reports indicated that the director left over budgetary concerns, Fukunaga maintained that wasn’t the case. Both sides had agreed on making the two films for $32 million, according to the director. But Fukunaga said he had bigger disagreements with New Line over the direction of the story. A rep from New Line didn’t respond to a request for a comment. Here’s Fukunaga’s explanation:

Fukunaga: “I was trying to make an unconventional horror film. It didn’t fit into the algorithm of what they knew they could spend and make money back on based on not offending their standard genre audience. Our budget was perfectly fine. We were always hovering at the $32 million mark, which was their budget. It was the creative that we were really battling. It was two movies. They didn’t care about that. In the first movie, what I was trying to do was an elevated horror film with actual characters. They didn’t want any characters. They wanted archetypes and scares. I wrote the script. They wanted me to make a much more inoffensive, conventional script. But I don’t think you can do proper Stephen King and make it inoffensive.

“The main difference was making Pennywise more than just the clown. After 30 years of villains that could read the emotional minds of characters and scare them, trying to find really sadistic and intelligent ways he scares children, and also the children had real lives prior to being scared. And all that character work takes time. It’s a slow build, but it’s worth it, especially by the second film. But definitely even in the first film, it pays off.

“It was being rejected. Every little thing was being rejected and asked for changes. Our conversations weren’t dramatic. It was just quietly acrimonious. We didn’t want to make the same movie. We’d already spent millions on pre-production. I certainly did not want to make a movie where I was being micro-managed all the way through production, so I couldn’t be free to actually make something good for them. I never desire to screw something up. I desire to make something as good as possible.

“We invested years and so much anecdotal storytelling in it. Chase and I both put our childhood in that story. So our biggest fear was they were going to take our script and bastardize it. So I’m actually thankful that they are going to rewrite the script. I wouldn’t want them to stealing our childhood memories and using that. I mean, I’m not sure if the fans would have liked what I would had done. I was honoring King’s spirit of it, but I needed to update it. King saw an earlier draft and liked it.”

@ForeverBlu wrote:So they wanted Cary to dumb it down, for the A.D.D. crowd.

Judging by what he said, he wanted to make a very intelligent horror film filled with actual characters something pretty much lacking in the entire genre and they said no?

I was shocked to read the part about Cary wanting Ben Mendolsehn for Pennywise before he committed to Star Wars Rogue One. I thought Poulter was an interesting choice but Mendelsohn would have been the most terrifying clown of all time and I'd never even heard rumors about him being up for the role. Frankly hearing that not only what Cary wanted to do with these films but who he wanted to cast, I'm beyond disappointed in the studio interference.

@Tyger wrote:Dammit, Wylde, now I wish this was a Netflix thing too. That's how Netflix (and others) can get big talent, support their passion projects

Cary's Beasts of No Nation is Netflix's next huge project, check the thread for it. Too bad "It" doesn't belong to him cause he's probably going to do more work for them over the next few years and that could have been amazing. Fucking studio interference.

Most novelists are lucky if one of their books catches the eye of Hollywood and makes it into feature film development, but Stephen King’s work has not only inspired countless adaptations, it’s inspired multiple adaptations of the same books. But one of King’s books that’s been ripe for an update is the horror epic It, which was previously made into a miniseries in 1990 and spurred terrible clown-centric nightmares for children everywhere—including yours truly.

A new iteration of It entered development a couple of years ago with True Detective helmer Cary Fukunaga co-writing and directing, but as the project came close to production, the filmmaker departed over creative differences. Now, Mama helmer Andy Muscietti is onboard to direct, and filming is set to get underway later this year.

Steve recently sat down for an exclusive interview with producer Roy Lee at DICE 2016, and Lee confirmed that Fukunaga and Chase Palmer’s original script—which they imbued with many of their personal experiences—has been rewritten:

“It will hopefully be shooting later this year. We just got the California tax credit… Gary Doberman wrote the most recent draft working with Andy Muscetti, so it’s being envisioned as two movies.”

Indeed, the plan was always to make this adaptation two movies, with the first revolving around the characters as children and the second picking up with them as adults. King’s book switches back and forth between the two time periods, and Lee added that once all is said and done, one could conceivably cut these two It movies together to make a more straightforward adaptation of King’s book:

“It is very close to the source material in one way but very different if you look at it as a literary piece of work… We’re taking it and making the movie from the point of view of the kids, and then making another movie from the point of view of the adults, that could potentially then be cut together like the novel. But it’s gonna be a really fun way of making this movie.”

As for the film’s rating, Lee confirms it will be Rated R and adds that while they have a final draft, they’re currently fine-tuning the script to hit their budget target:

“We are very close to turning in the final draft of the script. It’s mainly working on it for budgeting purposes to make it fit within the budget that we have.”

While it remains a bummer that we don’t get to see Cary Fukunaga’s version of this adaptation, it’ll be interesting to see how King’s terrifying novel is translated for modern horror audiences.

The movie is a remake of the cult TV show starring Erik Estrada, Larry Wilcox and Robert Pine that aired on NBC from 1977 to 1983.

Finally, Warners will release an untitled, PG-13 rated comedy on Dec. 22, 2017. That film will be pitted against the Weinstein Company’s “Six Billion Dollar Man” starring Mark Wahlberg, “The Croods 2” from DreamWorks Animation and 20th Century Fox, and an untitled live-action fairy tale film from Disney.

The actor, who is one of the stars of Hemlock Grove, has nabbed the role of Stephen King’s iconic villain Pennywise the Clown in New Line’s adaptation of the author’s landmark novel It.

Skarsgard is in final negotiations to star in the horror pic, whose cast will also include St. Vincent actor Jaeden Lieberher, Finn Wolfhard, Jack Dylan Grazer, Wyatt Oleff, Chosen Jacobs and Jeremy Ray Taylor.

Andy Muschietti, the helmer behind the surprise horror hit Mama, is directing the adaptation, which is being told in two parts. Dan Lin, Roy Lee, Seth Grahame-Smith, David Katzenberg and Barbara Muschietti are producing.

The story follows a group of teens called the Losers Club who defeat a creature called It. Years later, the creature returns, and the former club members, now adults, have to band together again even though they have no memory of the first battle.

New Line’s first movie will tell the kids’ story, while the second movie will focus on the adults.

Pennywise is the form the evil entity frequently takes. He is a clown who, when he smiles, is all killer teeth.

The project was originally coming together under the direction of Cary Fukunaga, who left over creative differences, and at the time, Will Poulter (We’re the Millers, The Revenant) was to have played Pennywise. The search for a new director pushed the movie by a year and Poulter was no longer available.

Jon Silk is executive producing It. Richard Brener, Walter Hamada and Dave Neustadter are overseeing the project for New Line.

Skarsgard is the son of Stellan Skarsgard (Avengers: Age of Ultron) and the brother of Alexander Skarsgard, who stars in Warner Bros.' Legend of Tarzan this summer. Apart from Hemlock Grove, Bill Skarsgard has appeared in Lionsgate’s Divergent.

“The costume definitely incorporates all these otherworldly past lives, if you will,” Bryant says. “He is definitely a clown from a different time.”

There’s a classic Harlequin quality to the elegant red lines, drawing up his cheeks like fangs to bisect his eyes. In this new image, we can more clearly see the fissures in the caked-on makeup atop his domed brow, resembling the sutures in the plates of a skull.

We even get a hint of his yellow, buck-toothed smile – or might those be something sharper?

His neck is frilled by a thick, puffy collar, like a ruff from the late 16th century, and here’s where we zoom in and venture into geek-out territory for costume enthusiasts. Every part of the costume is meant to suggest something both ancient and disturbed.

“That pleating is actually Fortuny pleating, which gives it almost a crepe-like effect,” Bryant says. “It’s a different technique than what the Elizabethans would do. It’s more organic, it’s more sheer. It has a whimsical, floppy quality to it. It’s not a direct translation of a ruff or a whisk, which were two of the collars popular during the Elizabethan period.”

For Pennywise, there’s no need to stay faithful to any era’s fashions. He is a manifestation of what an immortal, supernatural being thinks of as a clown, amalgamating various styles it finds appealing. …Or maybe he’s just thinking of a toy that once belonged to a child he devoured.

“There is almost a doll-like quality to the costume,” Bryant says. “The pants being short, the high waistline of the jacket, and the fit of the costume is a very important element. It gives the character a child-like quality.” Even the gloves are so tight and seamless they make his hands look like porcelain.

At 25, Skarsgård is a much younger Pennywise than Tim Curry, who was in his mid-40s when he played the role in the 1990 TV movie. The costume accentuates his youth, making it look like The Blue Boy outgrew his dandy outfit.

“If you look at the sleeves, there are the two puffs off the shoulder and biceps and again on the bloomers, I wanted it to have an organic, gourd or pumpkin kind of effect,” Bryant says. That includes the peplum at his waist, the flared, skirt-like fabric blossoming from below his doublet.

“It helps exaggerate certain parts of the body,” Bryant says. “The costume is very nipped in the waist and with the peplum and bloomers it has an expansive silhouette.”

It’s all aimed at creating a subliminal suggestion of a creature with long, lanky limbs, a head and neck like a cephalothorax, and a bulbous, arachnoid abdomen. But this creature is walking upright, and calling to you with a fistful of balloons.

The main color of his costume is a dusky gray, but with a few splashes of color.

“The pompoms are orange, and then with the trim around the cuffs and the ankles, it’s basically a ball fringe that’s a combination of orange, red, and cinnamon. It’s almost like Pennywise fades into his environment. But there are accents to pull out the definition of the gray silk.”

While studying those pustule-like ball fringe around his shins, you’ll also note the red and white boots with a pompom at the tip aren’t actually standing on anything. They’re floating.

While this isn’t the bright and cheery Pennywise, Bryant’s version of the character prefers to camouflage himself and strike rather than lure children with lively plumage.

@UltimateMarvel wrote:Creepy fucker! Makes you want to punch him. As someone who has never seen the old movie, look forward to seeing what the hype is about. People at work seem to be interested in this movie.

This scene may or may not have been direct responsible as to why as a young child I developed an intense hatred and mistrust for clowns and anybody who smiled too much. It's also the scene the new poster is referencing. Poor Georgie......